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DFW Drivers Invade Texas A&M Autocross |
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Written by Jerret Jan
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Thursday, 10 April 2008 |
In order to satisfy our craving to carve corners around cones and try
out the venue for a 2008 Solo Divisional event, several local DFW
drivers made the trip to College Station to participate in a autocross
event held by the Texas A&M Sports Car Club. Many of the DFW
attendees were there as part of a trip organized on the Metroplex Miata
Enthusiast (www.dfwmiata.com)
forum, but others outside of the Miata group attended as well. In all,
we had 11 ˝ attendees, with Jeff Hanchey out of Waco counting as the
half.
The drive from DFW to College Station in the morning is always the
easiest part, as there is no traffic when many of us leave our
residences at 4:30 AM. As in the past, we all met for breakfast at the
luxurious Golden Arches restaurant in Hearne, Texas, and then on to the
site with full (of not satisfied) tummies.
The site is part of the Texas A&M Riverside Campus, which was
originally home to Bryan Army Airfield. The racing occurs on a section
of old runway. I have not been to Walnut Ridge in Arkansas, but I am
told that the surface is very similar. It is a decent surface, much
better than Mineral Wells, but also smaller than Mineral Wells.
As expected, the racing was fun and talk in the grid always regarded
time comparisons and surly grid workers. In the end, DFW drivers took
home first place trophies in five different classes. Cody Case took
home the AS trophy, with Robert Jones in his new Honda S2000 CR just
behind him. Robert was running on the street tires that came with the
Honda, while Cody was running R-comps.
Kenny Baker not only took home a win in the excuse-free BS class, but
he also set the fastest time of the day for both raw times and PAX
times. Good job, Kenny! Thomas “The Stig” Hiromoto and Joseph Kan
(sharing a car with Thomas) followed up Kenny. As with AS, Kenny was on
R-comps while Thomas and Joseph raced on street tires. Had Thomas been
alerted to Kenny’s attendance prior to the event, then it would have
been an all out war for FTD and a BS win. The shots would have been
heard in DFW.
Mick “Sunshine” Harrison won CS over Bad Brad Hudson and Jeff Hanchey.
Mick was on R-comps versus street tires for Brad and Jeff. Brad will be
someone to watch for in the local tire class this season.
Jerrett Jan won ES on his first outing with R-comps. He was followed by Lorin Stolz (street tires) and Doug Covington.
As expected, local favorite Lisa Savage took honors in BSPL in her brown Corvette.
The drive home was marred by the typical extra traffic on Highway 6 and
Interstate 35, but the highlight was the stop for dinner. Eight of us
stopped off at the always yummy Elite Circle Grill in beautiful Waco,
Texas for a great meal. Chicken Fried Steak and Chicken Fried Chicken
seemed to dominate out selections, with only Doug Covington checking
his intake in his effort to take home the prize in the Ditch the Spare
Contest.
As with previous trips to College Station and Oklahoma City, it was
another good time. It is always hard to get up at 3:30 AM on Sunday
morning in order to drive several hours for five minutes of racing, but
it is always worth it in the end. Someone asked why I drive that far to
race so little, and I explained that it is more than just the racing.
We always have a good time with each other and end up with memories and
stories that provide never-ending fodder for the future. I look forward
to future trips and I hope more of our local racers will join us.
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Inspiration |
Think for yourself and let others enjoy the privilege of doing so too.
-Voltaire |
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